26/05/2024 British politics

Here is another theme that we could play with every week and not have too many repeats. Inspired by the Prime Minister's speech on Wednesday, the guests suggested JS, cavalier66, PS, YM and I revisit it.

The soundtrack: Lustmord - Much Unseen Is Also Here

A typically unambitious line-up

tOMoH presents: the current Minister for Work and Pensions is Mel Stride. You are not alone. Anyway, how could we try anything other than the Striding Man?

You know...

.

Johnnie Walker 12yo Black Label Islay Origin (42%, John Walker & Sons, b.2024): a new range that showcases regional characteristics. This allegedly has Caol Ila and Lagavulin. Nose: fruity (cavalier66), dusty (PS), sweet (YM), it has hints of smoke (cavalier66), lingonberry compote and ashes. Mouth: it is harsh for a starting dram (JS), teeming with hot compote, smoked cherries, lingonberries, charred apricots, and chewy smoked olives (not tapenade). Finish: PS finds it less peaty than the nose promised, while cavalier66 is annoyed that he likes a blend. Aside a honey-toffee note, we have burnt driftwood and smoked kelp. This is surprisingly convincing. 7/10

PS: "A lack of something, rather than a presence of something... Isn't that Suela Braverman's personality?"

cavalier66's first meal today

PS: [about the recent SMWS outturn]: "The best thing on the list was the fucking blend."
YM: "Are you going to start overly-sexualising your notes too?"

cavalier66 presents: Lochside -- a lost distillery, just like the Tories, on the 5th July, will have lost the election. Also, one is in the Rare Old collection, and the Tories in power will be rare, after the election. In addition, in an election, voters have to pick a side. Finally, the last time, prior to 1997, that Labour won an election by a landslide was in 1966, when the first of these two bottlings was distilled.

Lochside 22yo 1966/1989 (43%, Signatory Vintage, Oak Cask, C#7253-55, 800b): nose: musky (JS), more complex (cavalier66), it has a Cameronbridge level of pastry going on -- blueberry turnovers, honey-glazed choux. Burdock root (YM), earth (JS and YM), crystallised ginger and orange water (YM), and a notch of coconut, later on. JS discovers marshmallows too. Mouth: lavender and cheap violet cake decoration (PS), a chemical-artificial note, albeit an expensive one (cavalier66). Oh! yes, there is definitely a plastic-y, chemical note, flirting with shampoo, aside unripe orange, papaya, grapefruit skin, and even guava. The shampoo is not too bad, but it is there. Finish: complex, it is primarily fruity, but it also has a mild bitterness of citrus peels (grapefruit, tangerine, tangelo). Excellent. 9/10

vs.

Lochside 1981/1998 (40%, Gordon & MacPhail Rare Old, no screen print): nose: ginger and cinnamon (JS), tropical fruits and freshly-baked bread (YM). Pineapple and yellow maracuja. We then proceed towards melon skins (cantaloupe). Mouth: dark honey (YM), mango juice and crushed passion fruit and pineapple flesh. It has a yellow acidity that comes from a blend of smashed mango and smashed banana. Perhaps, one may find a whisper of star aniseed too. Finish: acidic indeed, fruity to the max (mango, pineapple, maracuja), and a tad bitter, exhibiting a hint of rubber. I even prefer this one. 9/10

cavalier66: "I can smell Harold Wilson, in this."
JS: "Who is that?"
cavalier66: "The longest-serving Prime Minister other than Blair."
JS: "How long was Blair?"
PS: "Ten years."
tOMoH: "The question was: 'how long was his ten-yure?'"

tOMoH presents: Here Come the Rain Again. A clear celebration of the rain that poured on Sunak during his speech, last Wednesday. A nod to Angela Rain-er. Also, the bottler cocked up the conjugation on the label, the same way the Tories cocked up so many things, over the past fourteen years. Finally, the Islay festival started yesterday, so it is fitting that we should have a Strath-Isla.

Strathisla 1999/2010 Here Come The Rain Again (46%, La Maison du Whisky Belgique, C#45530, 247b): nose: toffee and pears (YM and PS), bright (cavalier66), crisp, it has a hint of hay, and a pinch of crushed mint to augment vanilla. Mouth: fennel and caraway (PS, who is surprised at the divergence from the nose). We see some vanilla, here, but it is also grassy in an oregano way, and strongly acidic. A combination that works well. Finish: mellow vanilla walks alongside a clear Tory-like austerity. Herbes de Provence, oregano, sage. It is also quite potent, mint crumbles adding a fresh note to the headrush. 8/10

The soundtrack: Garbage - Garbage

JS presents: Tony Blair Athol in the Infrequent Flyers collection -- a name that has strong connotations of deportation flights to Rwanda, a policy that has been talked about for over a year, with no flight leaving the country to-date.

cavalier66 points out it is release 101 in that series.
cavalier66: "What is room 101, in 1984? It contains one's biggest fears. In our case, a Tory victory."

Not a frequent sight, this

Blair Athol 14yo 2008/2022 Release No. 101 (53.1%, Angus Dundee Distillers for Alistair Walker Infrequent Flyers bottled exclusively for Whisky Bible imported by MetaBev Korea, Sauternes Hogshead Finish, C#807414, 278b, CBSC4 11681): nose: Sauternes (cavalier66). It is bursting with marzipan, and drenched in syrup (not maple). It has some ash too, cigarette ash, to be precise, and plasticine. Mouth: sweet, it turns spicy quickly, with stem ginger, and cracked cinnamon sticks. The second sip has crushed menthol. Finish: long and spicy, it still has a pronounced sweetness, and lingering cigarette smoke, billowing in an automobile on a warm day. tOMoH usually hates that, but here, it somehow works. 8/10

PS [reaching for the pipette]: "May I?"
cavalier66: "Sure."
tOMoH: "Why ask? It's a pipette, not a suppository."
cavalier66: "I haven't done a fecal transplant yet."
PS: "He said: 'yet'..."
tOMoH: "It's still early."
YM: "It will change a dram."

YM presents: a 38% aged gin, full of random shit, possibly a tad watery. A bit like the Prime Minister's speech on Wednesday.

Zuidam 15yo 2008/2023 (38%, OB, American Oak Barrel, C#55, 284b, b#150): nose: window-cleaning agent? Actually, it is iron liqueur, if they make such a thing (think boozy Irn Bru). This is reminiscent of rye whiskey, we all find. Mouth: lactic and very Irn Bru-like. This is indeed close to a rye whiskey, in terms of taste too. We mostly have cereal-infused water (that will be wort, then). Finish: bigger than expected for the ABV. More rye, Aspirin Junior, brand-new rubber, kumquat, bergamot, and a soft bitterness. It is surprisingly good, if disorienting. 7/10

The soundtrack: Sheila Chandra - "This Sentence Is True" (The Previous Sentence Is False)

tOMoH presents: Speyburn, for the Spey, the most salmon-rich river in Scotland. Alex-Salmond-rich river. Yes, he left the limelight a while ago. Go find us a pun around the name Humza Yousaf!

Speyburn-Glenlivet 15yo 1975/1991 (60.1%, Cadenhead): nose: apricot (cavalier66), wax and dust (YM), Listerine, cinnamon or cassia splinters, tatters of cedarwood sheet. Mouth: huge and dry, hay-like, with just a dash of squeezed apricot. cavalier66 claims it has pre-peach too. Finish: this could pass for a forever-whisky, warming, full of hot apricot compote, and long lasting. Full notes here. I prefer it today, in this sequence. 8/10

YM presents: for the last fourteen years, the Tories have presented a peachy picture of the state of the State. The public would now like a more realistic picture of the world, yet let us focus on the peach, for a while longer.

MGPI Nulu (58%, PCS Distilling Company, Peach Brandy Barrel Finish, C#B1222): nose: peach perfume. Invasive. A bit vulgar. Mouth: "so much peach it is a little bit offensive" (YM). Tinned peaches (cavalier66). This is borderline sickly. Finish: peach syrup (cavalier66), peach jelly and tinned peach. A curiosity. 4/10

YM presents: Bimber, which encapsulates what Labour did during this Tory tenure: they talked a good talk, but when it came to the delivery, it was quite disappointing.

PS [implicitly referring to Bimber's recent developments]: "I thought you were going to say it has a criminal background."

Bimber 2020/2023 (59.4%, OB Private Cask, Peated Virgin Cask, C#202009, 28b): nose: a carpenter's workshop, with all sorts of pieces of wood and wood lacquer, teak, mahogany, super-oily wood, lacquered drinks cabinets, old-school desks, and some bacon. cavalier66 finds Bolognese sauce. Much later on, it is freshly-baked bread that comes out to tickle the nostrils. Mouth: a botanical note (YM), oily wood, splinters, crushed cloves, ginger shavings. The high strength makes it fairly drying too. Eau-de-vie-soaked raisins, mushroom water, shoe polish. Finish: potent brown soda of the cola variety, a lick of earth, and wood. JS finds it intense, and it is indeed. It has a dollop of shoe polish, dried dates, dried figs, booze-soaked prunes and raisins. Very good, in a root-y, woody way. What a contrast with the one from last week! This one seems to have more to say. Or it is a better day for it. Or I am simply more open to it. 7/10

PS: "Meat umami."
tOMoH: "Who's Mami? And where are you meeting her?"

cavalier66 uses the excuse to check his Grindr notifications.

The soundtrack: DJ Stingray - Kern

PS presents: in 1978, the Conservative party teamed up with Saatchi & Saatchi. They attacked Labour's unemployment policy with the slogan: "Labour isn't [Wire] Working".

Wire Works 2018/2024 (70.2%, OB for Melody Whisky Bar, Bourbon Cask, C#18-166, 100b, b#037): nose: apricots turn into kumquats (YM). It smells really tame, after the Bimber. A bit of faint earth and shoe polish, not much else. Mouth: YM detects preserved lemons after adding water. It is smoked preserved lemons alright, mixed-peel embers, and souped-up briny olives. It has a big fruitiness at second sip, with cured apples, baked pears, and baked kakis. Finish: lemon drops or sherbet (cavalier66). This clearly has a kick, but the ABV is hard to guess, blind. Or it makes you blind -- it depends. Disbelief all round, when PS points at it being 70+%. More baked fruits at second gulp, a pinch of earth, and still no sign of the extraordinary strength. This is staggeringly good. Hope we get to try it again. 8/10

PS presents: after the general election, we will see a Tory election. That will inevitably lead to lots-of-feuding. Bring. House. Down.

tOMoH observes that the label sports a sailboat, and could easily be used as a symbol for Stop the Boats, the Conservative's slogan to curb immigration.

Lagavulin 20yo b.2020 (54%, OB Exclusive bottled especially to commemorate Feis Ile 2020, Refill + PX/Oloroso Hogsheads, 6000b, b#0235): nose: earth patties, smoked seaweed, earth-glazed bacon. Longer nosing gives out a sweeter vibe, boiled sweets and crystallised smoked fruits. Mouth: seawater, molten rock, liquid metal (meltdown). It is hot, clearly liquid, mineral, but much less earthy than the nose suggested. Finish: long, earthy. It has some seaweed, but mostly earth -- smoked, not scorched. It is very peaty a dram that does not make me fall for this popular Kildalton distillery. 7/10

cavalier66: "I might add some water to this."
tOMoH: "You're very experimental, today."
cavalier66: "I know."
tOMoH [hinting at OB's obsession with low-ABV whiskies last week]: "Either that, or you're OB in disguise. In which case, where the fuck is the pastry?"

YM presents: Ardbeg Heavy Vapours, the Boris Johnson of whisky -- full of hot air.

Ardbeg Heavy Vapours b.2023 (50.2%, OB Special Committee Only Edition, ex-Bourbon Casks): nose: liquid smoke (YM), smoked raclette cheese, raw-milk raclette cheese, old Parmesan rind -- that spells 'butyric', does it not? That morphs into clay and smoked earth, before hot embers join the dance. Further nosing introduces surgical alcohol, alcohol swabs, tincture of iodine dripping on dry earth. Mouth: narrow and mineral (cavalier66), it has dried meat and umami (PS). Elastic peat, smoked plasticine, iodine, and a medicinal touch, especially upon repeated sipping. Finish: drying (cavalier66), ashy (YM), ripe with surgical alcohol and tincture of iodine, mercurochrome, even, alongside pilchards in tomato sauce. What pisses me off with Ardbeg is that their releases are gimmicky AF, but they are also usually quite good. 8/10

tOMoH: "SMWS has one called Cabinet of curiosities."
cavalier66: "The difficulty is finding it."
JS: "Whiskybase is the best tool to search for SMWS bottlings."
cavalier66: "I mean in my house."
PS: "I don't remember there being a Cabinet of backstabbing arseholes."

Another good one, full of dodgy puns and unusual whiskies.

18/05/2024 London MkIV

Today, we revisit a theme we like. Because we like it, but also because the possibilities are virtually endless. JS, OB, and cavalier66 join me for an afternoon of punnage around the great city.

cavalier66 brought his own breakfast, since he has been up
for about 37 seconds by the time he arrives

tOMoH presents: Coal-burn Drops Yard, Cole-burn-brooke Row, and Cole-burn-man Street

Coleburn 17yo d.1965 (40%, Gordon & MacPhail Connoisseurs Choice, b.1982): nose: "if petrol was fruity, it would smell like this" (cavalier66). The same cavalier66 then discovers a butyric note ("or is it a remnant of last night's forty pints?" asks OB), and Riesling (OB). Later on, it becomes almost coconut-y (OB). JS detects something funky. Mouth: cavalier66 finds it more powerful than expected (cue inevitable discussion about Connoisseurs Choice bottlings at various strengths through the eras). JS tastes damp socks. Finish: not much to speak of for cavalier66, who adds that it disappears quickly. Liquorice (OB), and something animal (JS). There is not enough left for me to try it again, today. Full notes here.

vs.

Coleburn 12yo d.1981 (43%, James Mac Arthur Fine Malt Selection): nose: cardboard and dunnage (cavalier66), charred newspaper, then fleeting carambola (ay! Carambola). cavalier66 announces it has a subtropicality, and diluted Fisherman's Friends. JS, on the other hand, detects confectionary sugar. Mouth: it has an unexpected fruitiness (OB), though that remains in a big cardboard box (OB). I find it rather acidic. The second sip is very fruity, OB tells us. Finish: brighter (I point out we celebrate London, not Brighton -- cavalier66 objects the latter is London-on-Sea). To me, it presents windscreen defroster. Full notes here. 7/10

vs.

Coleburn 13yo d.1981 (43%, James Mac Arthur Fine Malt Selection): nose: pickled onions (cavalier66), cardboard, antifreeze spray. Maybe it has bone-dry white wine too, acidic, and a bit fruity nonetheless. JS reckons it smells more diluted, despite the same ABV. Mouth: amorphous, with a pillow-y feel (OB), yet it grows on OB, who finds it comforting. Sodium alginate, or other elastomer used as impression body for one's teeth. Finish: cavalier66 calls it dirty and full of pickled onions, but also misty. He adds there is nothing bright about this one. JS finds it chalky, and likens it to kids' Aspirin, or Tylenol Junior. "Or Calpol," says cavalier66. Full notes here. 7/10

The second is everyone's favourite, today.

cavalier66: "When you put it in the mouth, [...] its attack is soft."
tOMoH: "That's what she said."

tOMoH: "The third one is not the prettiest girl around, but I'd drink it all night."
cavalier66: "You whore!"

cavalier66 [admitting he and OB only ever had one Coleburn]: "Coleburns are like London buses. You wait for hours, then three show up at once."

cavalier66: "You know, she's Greek, so everything becomes a bit of a drama."
tOMoH: "I think the word is 'tragedy'."

OB: "Is the next one Glenglas-Soho?"

JS presents: Glen-Clash-augh - London Calling

Glenglassaugh 40yo b.2013 (42.5%, OB): nose: olive oil (cavalier66), tertiary micro-aromas (cavalier66), and a good whack of tropical fruit in your face (cavalier66). Dates and prunes abound, then fresher fruits, some of which tropical -- lychee, dragon fruit, jackfruit, and, in the end, purple passion. Mouth: full-on apricot turnovers, then lychee, mangosteen ("I was thinking of that, but I was not sure it is bright enough for mangosteen" -- cavalier66). Finish: elegant, fruity, long, with only a minor lick of wood (mahogany) in a bowl of lychee custard, served with milk chocolate with a fruit filling. Full notes here. 9/10

cavalier66: "We started with a trifecta / trio, now, we are tertiary. We're going up in numbers!"
OB: "Not really."

OB: "Glenglassaugh is like Glendronach for grown-ups."

tOMoH: "I do get passion fruit, now."
cavalier66: "Pink?"
tOMoH: "Purple."
cavalier66: "There is no pink. I tricked you."
tOMoH: "I said: 'purple'."
cavalier66: "Ah. Yellow are more acidic, then white, and green..."
OB: "There is white?"
tOMoH: "Green are the poisonous ones, aren't they?"
cavalier66: "That's not what the guide told us..."
tOMoH: "...but you've not had an erection since."

OB presents: a Bow More-nington Crescent bottled by Signatory Vint-Edgeware

Bowmore 30yo 1972/2002 (50.3%, Signatory Vintage Rare Reserve, Oak Cask, C#928, 192b, b#83): nose: farm-y and surgical, it blends pastures and hospital-grade alcohol, tar just dried, ink, and Fisherman's Friend (cavalier66). Water reveals more fruit, which quickly disappears in favour of dust. Mouth: with cereal and fruit on the palate, this is juicy, and rather earthy. We still find some ink, and a soft bitterness. With water, earthy fruits take over, chewy and mellow, a delicious mix of peach and plasticine. Finish: hot, scalding fruits, boiling ink, and ashy earth, dunnage warehouse, a clay floor so dry it makes one cough. Water keeps it long and earthy, now with dried apricot and mango slices. OB is less disappointed than the first time, now he has had time to digest the fact it is not a 1960s profile. Exquisite whisky, really. I like it even better than the first time, which, for some reason does not appear on this blog. 9/10

cavalier66: "The only problem is the colour. It is so light it is probably not a very good whisky."

The discussion organically moves to sex in an alleyway, between rubbish bins.
OB: "It's a bit sordid."
tOMoH: "It is a bit sordid. I must say I don't see the appeal."
OB: "A friend of mine tried it. He realised halfway through that it was sordid, and could not continue. Then the shame settled in..."
tOMoH: "Had he had green passion fruit prior?"

We talk about Paris.
cavalier66: "I haven't been to Paris in a while. I'd love to go."
tOMoH: "Yes, you need new shirts. We've seen this one before."
OB: "Surely, they have a Web site you can buy from?"
cavalier666: "Well..."
tOMoH: "...since Brexit, I imagine it is not as easy."
cavalier66: "Exactly. Why would I squander my cash on shipping and import tax, when I can..."
tOMoH: "...spend it on whisky and blow jobs between rubbish bins in a back alley?"

tOMoH presents...
cavalier66: "Big Ben-riach?"
OB: "Benri-Acton?"

tOMoH presents: Ben-Riachmond Park

The BenRiach 30yo 1978/2009 (49.2%, OB Limited Release, Hogshead, C#7772, B#6, 187b): nose: peachy. Embarrassingly, that is all I write about the nose. The others are not much more eloquent, other than 'oh' and 'ah'. Mouth: warm peach, peach purée, even, and baked butternut, oozing sweetness. Finish: long, warming and comforting. Terrible notes, terrific whisky. Better ones here. 9/10

JS notices OB's Mystery Coffee socks.

OB: "It's this coffee competition online. I take part each week."

Minds are boggled.

cavalier66 [about the Coleburn trio]: "The Greek have a word for that..."
all: "Triptych?"
cavalier66: "There's a Greek word..."
tOMoH: "Debt?"
cavalier6: "No, but it is in the financial context..."
tOMoH: "Debtos?"

cavalier66: "My daughter pretended to have a stomach ache, because she liked the taste of Calpol."
JS: "That's how addiction starts."
OB: "She went to Ministry of Sound afterwards. I think there is a greater risk of addiction."
cavalier66: "How do you know she went there?"
tOMoH: "He was there. In the alleyway, between the rubbish bins."

The soundtrack: Hard Corps - Metal + Flesh

JS presents: Rose-bank-bury Avenue

25.66 23yo d.1990 Bette Davis doing DIY (57.8%, SMWS Society Single Cask, Refill Ex-Bourbon Hogshead, 157b): nose: lemon bonbons (cavalier66), sherbet (cavalier66). It is fairly mineral too, and has a side of bone-dry wood to boot. Mouth: narrow, floral, lemon-y, all at once (cavalier66). Finish: "it might be a one-trick pony, but what a trick!" (OB) Full notes here. 9/10

The soundtrack: He Said - Take Care

cavalier66 presents: Black Friars-day

cavalier66: "I've been impressed by this before, but it's never had to follow such a line-up."

Black Friday 21yo 2019 Edition (53.1%, The Whisky Exchange, Refill Bourbon Hogsheads, 1800b, P/001188): nose: "all the fruits, including tropical -- maybe grape" (cavalier66). Reeking of soft-leather pouches at first, it quickly gains a vibrant fruitiness, as well as something burnt, or smoked. Twigs by the fireplace, caramelised something (cavalier66). Lots of orchard fruits spring out as one tilts the glass. Mouth; buttery fruits (apricots, peaches). It is so coatingly velvety -- a compote of all the fruits nature produces. Who cares if it is not overly complex? It is gorgeous. Finish: seriously fruity here too, bursting with peach, and, at second sip, maracuja and mango. The nose diminishes the overall merit a bit, but I will be generous anyway with this alleged Glenburgie. 9/10

cavalier66: "It does not cry out for water, despite the 53%."
OB [who is a born-again reduced-whiskies lover, today]: "Wellllllll... Let me find a full pitcher of water, I'll add a few drops of whisky to it and tell you."

OB: "It's a bit dough-y."
tOMoH: "Bovid Dough-y?"

cavalier66: "Is that a type of cows?"

cavalier66 [about the cannelés]: "I've yet to try one of OB's columns."
OB: "I've only got the one."
tOMoH: "Do you exhibit it between bins?"

The soundtrack: Modern English - After The Snow

OB presents: Bimber Camden Town

Bimber Camden Town b.2022 (58.5%, OB Single Cask Release, Amontillado Cask, C#288/23, 351b, b#225): nose: something vegetal, such as honeysuckle that has not bloomed, then macaron shells. It definitely has a bakery note, soft, pleasant, subtle, there. There is a hint of Irn Bru alongside burnt cake crust. Mouth: "what am I drinking?" (JS) Toffee, caramel, a lick of new rubber. Further sips are dusty and more drying. Finish: a cask-strength Sherry (cavalier66 and OB). For my part, I find it tastes like a a 1970s blend (or is it spelled 'bland'?) at cask strength. Not unpleasant, but nothing to rave about either. 7/10

OB: "A  good beverage, I would say. At a whisky tasting, it falls a bit short."

tOMoH: "It's got nothing that sticks out. It's good, but has no personality. A bit like Camden Town [in 2024]."

cavalier66 presents: Spring-Bank bottled for the Society, which is also the abbreviated name of a private whisky club on Greville Street.

Springbank 28yo b.2021 (48.2%, OB Springbank Society, Sherry Hogshead + Sherry Butt + Bourbon Barrel + Rum Barrel, 2966b, 21/178): nose: a bit of rum -- that cask clearly dominates the mix. Then, it is dusty dunnage-warehouse clay floors, rancio, lichens and cobwebs. On the late tip, we have burnt apricot compote. Mouth: yes, rum again, really clear. Chewing reveals a mellow-but-hot (in temperature, not spicy) fruit paste, membrillo, or fig relish. It is sweeter and sweeter the more one sips it. Finish: soft, membrillo-like, it offers baked fruits (physalis and apricots), stewed fruits, and a dash of grapefruit juice. This is good, if not very Springbank-y. It is also underwhelming, with the pedigree in mind, we all agree. 7/10

The soundtrack: 坂本龍一 / 上野耕路 / 野見祐二 / 窪田晴男 - Aile De Honnêamise - Royal Space Force = オネアミスの翼 ~王立宇宙軍~ オリジナル・サウンド・トラック

cavalier66 presents: on the Northern Line, after Tooting Broadway comes Tooting Ard-Bec

Ardbeg 26yo 1994/2021 (47.4%, Cadenhead Authentic Collection, Bourbon Hogshead, 210b): nose: ink and tar (cavalier66) and fishing nets. It does smell a bit muted. Warm sands, perhaps? Mouth: soapy, plastic-y (cavalier66, OB, JS). Sample gone off. I find diluted sea water, and oysters in cold fresh water. Finish: fairly short, with a mild sea influence (oysters and fishing nets again). Some wood too, though that gives way to a lingering plastic taste. The urine sample has clearly gone wrong, even if I am less sensitive to it than my fellow tasters. 6/10

tOMoH presents [inspired by OB, who called for a Wenlock-side Road]: G-Wenlock-y Road

Glenlochy 17yo 1977/1995 (61.8%, Cadenhead Authentic Collection imported by Preiss Imports, 95/250): nose: horse's hair (cavalier66), whisky with an identity (OB), "stripping away your nasal septum, one alcohol molecule at a time." (OB) Behind an austere, lichen-y veneer, we see cardboard sheets dusted with confectionary sugar. Mouth: sweet, caster-sugar-augmented herbal infusion, and pulverised stones. There is nothing quite like  Glenlochy, is there? Finish: fearsome, big, hairy, loaded with lichen -- however, that lichen grows on caster sugar. This feels incredibly sweet, today. Full notes here. 8/10

OB: "Trying to find my words. I'm becoming coherent. I mean incoherent."
cavalier66: "That's all the water you've been drinking."

The soundtrack: Tears For Fears - The Hurting

JS pours a bonus: she and cavalier66 have

Bowmore 18yo 1966/1984 (53° GL, RW Duthie imported by S. Samaroli Bouquet, 720b): for Bow-more Church. An explosion of pink grapefruit that has the boys guess Benriach. It also has a distinct lick of rubber, that confirms its non-Benriachness. Full notes here.

OB has Lochside 42yo d.1963 (44.2%, Hunter Hamilton The Clan Denny, C#HH2243) for Wenlock-side Street. Notes here.

Amazing tasting. Precious moments of joy.

And a pleasant round of Pun intended

17/05/2024 Bimber

Time to clear some leftovers from a tasting three-and-a-half years ago.

Bimber 3yo 2017/2020 (57.9%, Thompson Bros. for export, C#171, 250b): nose: well, if that is not apricot tart! Vivid and vibrant we have a lovely apricot compote cooling down on the window sill, and puff pastry -- hence the tart, though it could also be turnovers. A delicate briny touch surfaces that hints a pitted green olives, and introduces woodier tones, oiled chairs and polished car body. In fact, the latter becomes louder, touching on the metallic, for an instant. Then, it reverts back to green olives, and adds watercolour. To think this started with apricot tart! It is quite the ride. The second nose slaps one in the face with hazelnut-studded milk chocolate (Merveilles du Monde, for those who know). Then, we have almond paste (not overly-sweetened marzipan), and an apricot filling that does not necessarily feel one hundred percent natural. This is all very 1980s-Italy breakfast-y. The word 'merendine' keeps coming to mind, which one could more or less accurately understand as 'brioche', or 'bun'. Mouth: the attack is somewhat astringent, and bitter in a crushed-nut way (hazelnut, almond). The alcohol is potent, incisive, and seems to come with a whisper of smoke. Out of that smoke emerge orchard fruits: roasted apples, roasted pears, and more nuts. This has a drop of engine oil too, alongside alcohol-based industrial cleaning agent. The second sip still punches a hole in the tip of the tongue, then pours pulped fruits into it to cauterise the wound. Finish: quite focussed and contained, it turns wider with each passing second, radiating heat from one's core. Hot a-fruit juice (apple, apricot) with no pulp whatsoever, warmed nut oil, warmed wax. There seems to be no trace left of either olives or polished car body, and milk chocolate is merely suggested. The second sip is thicker, and the fruits from earlier (apples, apricots) are now presented in a paste form, purée or compote. It is still as hot, on the other hand. That does not change. Nice, if a little youthful. 7/10

Bimber (57.9%, OB, Re-Charred Cask, C#144, 303b): nose: this one has apricot tart too, though it is more fleeting. In seconds, that scent gives way to white spirit or turpentine. One need not wait long for that to change again, which leaves us with plasticine and kaju katli (yum!), then a comforting fruit-tree fire in a bothy, and a plate of roasted apple slices and hazelnuts. It is suddenly autumnal alright. Eventually, we find some car polish too, though that stays discreet and secondary. The second nose has freshly-cut hazel wood, oily and sappy, and just a hint of pine needles. Later on, that morphs into a pine-forest floor, acidic, dry, covered in needles that have lost all fragrance. Another minute allows a soft citrus smell to wave from a distance, and fleeting vegetables -- steamed asparagus, basted with lemon juice, then left to dry on a sheet of paper. Reads odd, works well. Mouth: assertive, the palate offers chewy plasticine, the strong, refreshing bitterness of liquorice bootlaces, and wood-stain tins. Chewing does not merely increase those: it also adds drying, bitter rustic wood, for a minute. Wood patina, propolis... and we end up where we started: with plasticine. The second sip is bitter, still, a windscreen wiped by wipers that have been cleaned squeaky with acetone. Chewing reveals citrus peel -- a combination of grapefruit and sweeter species (calamansi, tangerine), served on a rubber plate, topped with cracked white pepper. Finish: plasticine indeed, elastic, bouncy, and not a little bitter, it falls somewhere between rubber joints and black liquorice bootlaces. It is not as sickly as either of those, thank Cthulhu, and one may imagine chewy, rubbery dried apricots lingering, if somewhat overshadowed by liquorice. Here too, repeated sipping produces citrus peel, chewy, bitter, but also fruity: pink grapefruit, orange, calamansi. It is distinctly juicier than before, akin to a pink-grapefruit cordial diluted with hot water, and warm, as if kept in a hot bottle made of dusty metal. I think I prefer this one, today. Of course, it is limited to 303 bottles -- ha! ha! 7/10

16/05/2024 Speyburn

Speyburn-Glenlivet 15yo 1975/1991 (60.1%, Cadenhead): nose: very dry, full of dust, desert dirt, grist, and hay bales that have spent the summer in the uninterrupted sunshine. Not many other whiskies smell quite like this. Breathing and shaking the glass bring forth a fruit-eau-de-vie touch, kirsch, slivovitz, or such, then we return to our hay bales and dust. It is noticeably more mineral, all of a sudden, and it is quarry dust that emerges, flint chippings, slate filings. It takes a little grassy detour too, ivy leaves macerating in the same eau-de-vie we spotted before. One can tell it is going to be a challenging dram, already, and not just because of the high ABV. Exciting! Further on, we have more grist, wetted, not porridge yet, and remote Bourbon-cask staves -- toffee, custard. Perhaps it has some dried mixed peel too. The second nose cranks up the dusty notes so much it is closer to pulverised glass (does that count as sand?), with the odd grist-y scent. In fact, we have buckets of crushed glass left in the sun. Kickboxer comes to mind. The sun is a staple, is it not? Just a couple of drops of water add a citrus note to this; dried calamansi, or even pineapple. There is nothing juicy here: it is simply more acidic and fruity. Mouth: boom. It is of course rather hot. A fierce blend of ground peppers (black and white), or a pepper sauce, the sort restaurants serve with steak, haystacks on fire, smoked herbs (oregano, tarragon), and campfire stones that have split from the heat. It has a grimier side too, now, probably a bucket of soot. The second sip is all about dust. Dusty ashes collected in the tray of the built-in fireplace, soot, pulverised glass, granite dust, coal dust, torched lemon zest, subsequently ground in a pestle and mortar, a horse's back, after it has rolled around in dirt. Water makes it fresher and fruitier, although it remains powerful too. Lemon slices topped with sprigs of parsley. All that is missing is the seafood, really. Instead, we have dusty grist, and something root-y... Cassava flour? Finish: hard to describe. Is my gob totally anaesthetised? No, but apart from a general warmth, I am struggling to figure out what is happening -- if anything. It seems balanced enough, like a warm (not scalding) bath. That is spot on! This has a gentle swimming-pool quality to it, which spells chlorine, surely. Nothing wrong with that; it does not cause red eyes, or anything. Just an eerily-familiar feeling of having been in contact with warmed disinfected water. It is no longer really dusty: gone are the hay bales and the eau-de-vie, the ivy and the custard. The second gulp revives the toffee a little, and, incredibly, presents it in a watered-down form. Indeed, we are seeing watery melted toffee, sprinkled with grist dust (only the dust). Now, that is something one might expect of a 1970s blend at 40% from a half-evaporated miniature. From this beast? Most unusual! Water does not change the finish much. We still have watered-down toffee. If anything, it is less watered-down, which is counter-intuitive. It is dusty toffee, too, one that was forgotten in a cupboard for decades. The finish very much harks back to blends of yesteryear, which all tasted the same. One wonders if it is because they were all full of Speyburn. The distillery allegedly supplies huge volumes in bulk to various houses, after all. A very interesting drop. It would score higher with a stronger finish, though. 7/10

15/05/2024 Tullibardine

Tullibardine 42yo 1965/2007 (41.8%, OB, Hogshead, C#2337, 112b): nose: a burst of fruits, fresh and candied, then a pouch of Virginia tobacco, and dunnage warehouse. Candied apple slices, strawberry jellies, candied papaya and pineapple cubes, dried mango slices, sliced fresh banana dusted with confectionary sugar, and fresh greengages converse with dusty floors and stone walls, in the moist atmosphere of a cellar that has glassless windows. Candied fruits seem to have the upper hand, for a minute, even pointing at Turkish delights. Then, the nose switches back to blonde tobacco, and there is even a whisper of rubber, oilcloth, or electric cables in the background -- something that takes us firmly back to the 1980s. Later on, crocuses and hyacinths tickle the nostrils. The second nose injects some beeswax into the equation, as well as jars of set light honey (Meli or Rowse, nothing boutique-y). Later yet, the dunnage scents from the beginning become terracotta cooling at room temperature, mixed peel so dry it has lost most of its scent, and old pine cones. Mouth: the attack is almost soapy, for a moment, then we see meadow flowers, such as dandelions and cornflowers join the crocuses from the nose. Chewing confirms the soapy lick, and, despite it not being awful, it definitely has apricot-scented shampoo. The second sip has the character of a honey-glazed almond paste, sweet and bitter at the same time. A minute on the tongue (less, if chewing) brings back the shampoo, however, which could prove challenging for some. Chamomile-scented Garnier Ultra Doux for blonde locks. Finish: pure golden goodness, now, between dried apricots, candied dandelions (candelions?), butter croissants, and peach jelly. No soap here, yet it presents a soft bitterness, more ash, or spent-wick-in-lukewarm-candlewax than shampoo. Repeated sipping is in line, a tennis match between honey-sweet and dandelion-bitter, with enough yellow fruits to keep it balanced. A chewy paste appears, in the long run, a blend of clay, porridge, dried apricots, and honey, splashed with a yellow-flower broth. Re-reading my notes from our first encounter, I feel as if the remainder of the sample took a turn for the worse, over the last five months. As it stands today, it would score higher without that shampoo note. 8/10 (Thanks for the sample, OB)

13/05/2024 Ben Nevis²

Ben Nevis 43yo 1970/2014 (44.7%, Berry Bros. & Rudd, C#3): nose: it smells ancient and a bit dank, somewhat reminiscent of a Valley-of-the-Kings tomb, minus the suffocating heat. We note stale air, dusty floors, orchard-fruit offerings, dried to a stone mass, and old staves leaming against a wall for decades. Minutes of breathing pump it up with some moisture, which makes wood come out more: a 1950s-automobile dashboard, polished walnut, mahogany drinks cabinets, then coffee and biscuits baked for a little too long. None of those is dominant enough to be a nuisance. Deeper nosing gives caramelised marzipan, and a dash of fruit-based alcohol (liqueur or eau-de-vie, I dare not say). It is a little funky, unsurprisingly for this distillery, though that aspect is easily overlooked. The second nose has a slice of mocha sponge cake, served with a shot of espresso. Then, it becomes sweeter, and introduces fruit jellies, far from the initial stale-air scent. Mouth: more cutting than anticipated, even if it is not exactly sharp. In seconds, we discover nut paste (hazelnut? Macadamia? Cashew?), doused in a nut liqueur of sort. It has indeed a clear bitterness to it that flirts with Alka Seltzer, at times, yet stays closer to ground nuts from which the oil has vanished, and is therefore bone dry. The second sip is sweeter too, and delivers (green) fruit jellies and citrus foliage, chopped and candied. This time, the whole has a discernible heat to it, and a bitterness too, both of which hint at metal. Then, fruits appear that may be tinned pears, apples, green grapes, or a combination of all -- 'tinned' is the key word, here. Finish: another twist: the finish is a lot juicier than the nose and palate. It retains a clear bitterness, and it is closer to a warming almond liqueur than almond milk, but still. It is less dry, and more welcoming. Retro-nasal olfaction captures a stick of butter softening at room temperature on a sunny day, which is original, and goes well with newly-found walnut kernels. The second sip has more fruits, namely Golden Delicious apples, pears, green grapes, carambola (at a push), pomelo and yuzu. This goes from bitter to acidic, even if its sweetness keeps both in check. Delicious! It certainly benefits from breathing and repeated sipping too. 8/10

Ben Nevis 24yo 1996/202 (52.1%, Berry Bros. & Rudd exclusive to Royal Mile Whiskies, Refill Sherry Butt, C#1196): nose: in pure 1996 tradition, this one is funky and earthy, farm-y, even, offering loamy fields recently ploughed, and pastures next to that, home to happy cows. Surely, an imaginative mind will find lots of fruits here, but tOMoH will remain contained, today. The farm-y notes likely encompass orchard fruits (apples, mainly), fallen from the tree, and decaying in the tall grass, but a 1981 Lochside this is not. A minute later, and just to prove tOMoH wrong(ish), sink funk and hiking boots appear, shy, wrestling with a mineral facet. Indeed, flint and decaying fruits become louder with each sniff, and draw attention away from a funkiness that one would otherwise associate with musk. Menthol emerges from the tilted glass. The second nose sees an oilcloth from the 1980s kick the taster in the nostrils, for a second. Then, a spread takes over, made of nuts and orchard fruits -- walnuts, peanuts, apples, pears, white peaches. Much later, we rush back to the farm, with a fleeting-yet-strong scent of bull (not cow), gone as quickly as it was vivid. Mouth: menthol alright, vivacious, refreshing. Then, suddenly, it is all fruit: white peaches, lychees, dragon fruits, Comice pears, none too juicy, but tasty. Those fruits are augmented with grated star anise, which confers a fresh bitterness to the mouth. The second sip bursts with juicy fruits, adds a heaped spoonful of caster sugar, and pushes menthol to the background. It is creamy in texture, just fruitier. A tame bitterness re-appears too. Further sips seem more acidic, and generate more heat again, with stewed fruits and jams. Finish: here too, we find a fresh number, and a juicier one at that. It is a finish that grows in intensity, if not complexity, and goes from menthol to peppermint in the space of twenty seconds. It may not anaesthetise the taste buds, but it strongly radiates warmth from the core.. Perhaps one could liken this to all the afore-mentioned fruits, stewed for so long they provide texture rather than taste. They come with menthol and toasted aniseed. The second gulp presents a paste of smashed banana and pineapple, slowly overtaken by lichen on ex-Bourbon-cask staves, and raita past its prime and starting to split. This one also benefits from extensive breathing and repeated sipping. 8/10 (Thanks for the sample, RMW)

Parts of both drams easily deserve 9/10.
However, on the whole, they are 8/10 material for tOMoH.

In other news, that is another notebook filled up.

10/05/2024 Bulleit

Bulleit Bourbon Frontier Whiskey (40%, OB imported by Bulleit UK): nose: in classic Bourbon fashion, this has a nose full of exuberant vanilla and wood spices, such as powdered ginger and cinnamon, ground cloves, and dried coconut grated so finely it is essentially dust. That quickly grows damper, turning into coconut yoghurt, and something that conjures up memories of the bathroom at my maternal grandmother's -- in other words: some cleaning agent, be it a lemon-scented soap bar, a descaler (who said Zscaler?), or a cream cleaner (Cif comes to mind). The second nose offers something unusual that I would liken to a Pedro-Ximénez type of concoction made of mixed peel and candied citrus segments instead of raisins. Perhaps Cointreau or Grand Marnier would be acceptable comparisons, yet the candied aspect strikes me more clearly, here. We soon return to vanilla, however. Mouth: predictably, it is a combination of vanilla, coconut cream, ground ginger, and a dusting of cinnamon, augmented with a drop of citrus juice. I initially think lemon, but it is actually bergamot, or kumquat, meaning less acidic, and it comes close to a spoonful of marmalade of the stuff, rather than watery juice: it is thick and coating indeed. Chewing reveals a tame wood bitterness (dried orange peels and woodworm-riddled rustic chairs). The second sip, just like the nose, focusses on a citrus liqueur, which is to say that the wood bitterness is mostly fruity, rather than plank-y -- and that is a good thing. Finish: the emphasis is now strongly on citrus, with candied kumquats, crystallised blush-orange segments, and enough thick marmalade to spread on a whole loaf of bread. The coating sweetness that comes with that is aptly balanced by a distinct bitterness. It gives a bit of depth without presenting an insurmountable challenge to the unsuspecting sipper. The second gulp is sweeter yet, a strong coconut yoghurt infused with vanilla extract, and augmented with tangerine segments. All that citrus paints an orange picture, which makes one wonder if that is the reason they chose orange as the colour of the label. Anyway, this is simple, comforting, it is hardly going to change the world, but it does the trick without pretension. 7/10 (Thanks for the sample, SL)

02/05/2024 May outturn at the SMWS

Joining MJ at the old haunt for drinks. It happens to be the outturn preview, tonight. PS is here, of course, and so are JS and YM.

The first impression is that I do not recognise any of the staff. The second is that the music is loud and hardly adequate. 1980s sing-alongs by Bon Jovi, White Snake, The Communards, Village People? And the staff is, indeed, singing along? How this place has changed!

We select our whiskies from the new outturn, and I catch the waiter pouring all nine of them in one sitting. Some may want to go back and forth during the session, but it feels strange to force that, rather than give the choice. I interrupt him, and we receive one dram at a time. Phew.

2.139 17yo d.2006 Feeling peachy (57.5%, SMWS Society Cask, 1st Fill ex-Bourbon Barrel, 154b)

Nose: sweet, with nougat and almond cake, βανίλια (that is Greek vanillia), and a slice of stem ginger, in the back, dripping with syrup. Dried pine needles appear on the second nose.
Mouth: citrus-y, sparkly, and a bit spicy (ground cassia and sawdust).
Finish: the heat grows and grows, carrying with it pickles and stem ginger. The second sip has baked grapefruit segments, still steaming. 8/10

Distillery 149 Rare Release 8yo d.2015 Furtive Gherkin (62.4%, SMWS In celebration of the Highland Whisky Festival 2024, 1st Fill ex-Bourbon Barrels, 1764b)

Nose: far peatier than expected, this has mud and tractor tyres after a rainy day in the fields. Then, timid fruits show up, plums, trampled in mud, and plasticine. The second nose has maracuja in mud.
Mouth: chewy, coating, more plasticine and damp modelling clay, before the arrival of a soft smoke.
Finish: long, warming, and maybe a tad bitter. Mace and heated stem ginger rock the place, here.
Comment: this has got to be a vatting of ten casks or so. unless it is the biggest barrel one has ever seen. 8/10

Distillery 4 Rare Release 20yo d.2003 Take me to the chippy (54.7%, SMWS In celebration of the Highland Whisky Festival 2024, Refill ex-Bourbon, HTMC & Oloroso (ex-Islay) Hogsheads, 924b)

Nose: ethereal pine-forest scents, dried needles, heather honey. We have pollen and propolis, over time, and furniture polish spouted out of spray can.
Mouth: mellow, teeming with honey and cut fruits of the tropical variety: papaya, jackfruit, ugli fruit, guava.
Finish: long, acidic, it has pine needles and citrus peels. JS finds it spicy, but I do not. The second sip is even more-spectacularly fruity, with jackfruit and mango now in the lead. 9/10

PS butts in on his way out. With a dram, as he does.

Irish Single Malt Whiskey 11yo Shimmering Silk (50%, SMWS, ex-Bourbon Barrels and First Fill Pedro Ximénez Hogsheads)

Nose: sultanas, raisins, dried dates, dried figs, and a metallic touch -- iron.
Mouth: Irn Bru, avocado skins (the bitterness more than the buttery flesh tatters).
Finish: juicy currants, golden sultanas, Lyle's Golden Syrup.
Comment: this is good. Maybe a bit one-note, and maybe it becomes slightly vulgar, with repeated sipping. 7/10 (Thanks for the dram, PS)

Distillery 5 Rare Release 20yo d.2003 Philosopher's stone (54%, SMWS In celebration of the Lowland Spirit 2024, 1st Fill ex-Bourbon Barrels, 427b)

Nose: sweet and fluffy, here is one pillow-y number that dishes out confectionary sugar, cotton candy, and juicy orange slices covered in sugar. The second nose has pink-grapefruit peels, then split stones.
Mouth: fluffy here too, this is like chewing on a freshly-washed pillow. The sweetness comes out shortly after, Turkish delights, tutti frutti, orange jellies, and a minute bitterness alongside candied papaya cubes.
Finish: big and sweet again, if less extreme on that front. Fruit juice with a wider acidity (orange juice), and a dusting of confectionary sugar.
Comment: according to the distillation date and age, this one was bottled at least five months ago. Again, considering the number of bottles, it is clear this is not a single cask. Anyway, it is good. 8/10

"Good one. Let me write it down."

MJ: "I smoked Gauloises, briefly, in my early teens, until a girl I fancied told me I looked like a dickhead with a cigarette in my hand. I stopped. The irony is she went on to become a smoker."
tOMoH: "Was it Alanis Morissette? Because that is really ironic." 

Despite the initial moaning, it was a good night out. Great to catch up with old friends, and refreshing to see that, despite change and price hikes, the Society still bottles decent things.